Council Regulation (EC) N° 322/97 of 17 February 1997 on Community Statistics (OJ N° L 52/1) sets the rules for General provisions, the Community statistical program and its implementation, Principles, Dissemination, Statistical confidentiality and Final provisions.

Council Regulation (CE) No 322/97 of 17 February 1997 (OJ No L 52/1) and Council Regulation (EURATOM, EEC) no 1588/90 of 11 June 1990 on the transmission of the data subject to statistical confidentiality to the Statistical Office of the European Communities (OJ No L 151/ 1) stipulates the detailed rules used for receiving, processing and disseminating the confidential data.

The most recent data on total population, live births, deaths and net migration (including administrative corrections) can be found under the DGEN collection in two different tables, depending on the degree of reliability of the data and the period of the year:

- most reliable data (based on national provisional data) are available in table GIND. During the period July-December, these are the most up-to-date population data available.

- during the period January-June, the most recent Eurostat estimates can be found in table GFEST. However, these data are subject to revisions, sometimes significant, from June onwards.

Detailed information on population (by age, sex and marital status) can be found under the DPOP collection. This information is however updated after the total population data found under the DGEN collection.

This can be either the population on 1 January or the average population during the year. Unless otherwise stipulated, the population on 1 Januaryis used.

Population On 1 January

The inhabitants of a given area on 1 January of the year in question (or, in some cases, on 31 December of the previous year). The population is based on data from the most recent census adjusted by the components of population change produced since the last census, or based on population registers

Population Change

The difference between the size of the population at the end and the beginning of a period. It is equal to the algebraic sum of natural increase and net migration (including corrections). There is negative change when both of these components are negative or when one is negative and has a higher absolute value than the other.

Natural Increase

The difference between the number of live births and the number of deaths during the year. The natural increase (or natural decrease) is negative when the number of deaths exceeds the number of births.

Net Migration

The difference between immigration into and emigrationfrom the area during the year (net migration is therefore negative when the number of emigrants exceeds the number of immigrants). Since most countries either do not have accurate figures on immigration and emigration or have no figures at all, net migration is generally estimated on the basis of the difference between population change and natural increase between two dates (in Eurostat database, it is then called net migration including corrections). The statistics on net migration are therefore affected by all the statistical inaccuracies in the two components of this equation, especially population change

Crude Rate Of Increase

The ratio of the total population change during the year to the average population of the area in question in that year. The value is expressed per 1000 inhabitants.

Crude Rate Of Natural Increase

The ratio of natural populationincrease over a period to the average population of the area in question during that period. The value is expressed per 1000 inhabitants.

Crude Rate Of Net Migration

The ratio of the net migration during the year to the average population in that year. The value is expressed per 1000 inhabitants. The crude rate of net migration is equal to the difference between the crude rate of increase and the crude rate of natural increase (that is, net migration is considered as the part of population change not attributable to births and deaths). It is calculated in this way because immigration or emigration flows are either unknown or the figures are not sufficiently precise.

Crude Birth Rate

The ratio of the number of births during the year to the average population in that year. The value is expressed per 1000 inhabitants.

Crude Death Rate

The ratio of the number of deaths during the year to the average population in that year. The value is expressed per 1000 inhabitants.

Age Dependency Ratio

The ratio of the number of persons of an age when they are generally economically inactive to the number of persons of working age (from 15 to 64 (1st variant) or from 20 to 59 (second variant) depending on the context). The total dependency ratio is obtained by adding the age dependency ratio of the young and the age dependency ratio of the old.

Old-Age Dependency Ratio

The ratio of the number of elderly persons of an age when they are generally economically inactive (aged 65 and over or aged 60 and over depending on the context) to the number of persons of working age (from 15 to 64 or from 20 to 59 depending on the context).

Young-Age Dependency Ratio

The ratio of the number of young persons of an age when they are generally economically inactive (either under 15 or under 20 depending on the context) to the number of persons of working age (from 15 to 64 or from 20 to 59 depending on the context).

Completed Fertility (By Generation)

The mean number of children born to women of a given generation at the end of their childbearing years. This is calculated by adding the fertility rates by age of the mother observed for successive years, when the cohort has reached the age in question (in general, only ages between 15 and 49 years are considered). In practice, the fertility rates for older women can be estimated using the rates observed for previous generations, without waiting for the cohort to reach the end of the reproductive period.

Mean Age Of Women At Childbearing By Generation

The mean age of women from the same generation when their children are born. The mean age is normally calculated when women have reached the end of their childbearing years (at age 50). The mean age of women at childbearing for a given calendar year comprises the fertility rates by age for women of different generations. By adding the rates for each of the calendar years lived by the same generation from the beginning of their childbearing years (at 15 years of age), the mean age at childbearing for this generation can be obtained. In principle, this calculation cannot be made until the generation has reached the end of its childbearing period, at around 50 years of age, but in practice, the fertility rates for older women can be estimated using the rates observed for previous generations.

Proportion Of Ever-Married By Generation

The proportion of individuals from the same generation who married at least once in their life. The sum of the first-marriage rates by age reached during the year, calculated for n calendar years for a generation, gives the proportion of persons in that generation who have entered into a first marriage during this period of n years. In practice, the first-marriage rates at advanced ages can be estimated using the rates for previous generations without waiting for the married life of the cohort to be completely over. This produces an estimate of the definitive proportion of ever-married people for this generation.

Proportion Of Marriages Dissolved By Divorce By Marriage Cohort

The sum of the divorce rates by duration of marriage calculated for n calendar years for a marriage cohort gives the proportion of marriages dissolved by divorce for this generation after n years. In practice, the divorce rates for advanced durations of marriage can be estimated using the rates for previous generations, without waiting for the married life of the cohort to be completely over. This produces an estimate of the definitive proportion of marriages, which will end in divorce for this generation.

gind: Population change: absolute numbers and crude ratesIndicators:- Population on 1. January- Population on 1. January - males- Population on 1. January - females- Average population- Average population - males- Average population - females- Live births- Live births - males- Live births - females- Deaths- Deaths - males- Deaths - females- Natural increase- Net migration- Net migration including corrections- Total population increase- Crude birth rate- Crude death rate- Crude rate of natural increase- Crude rate of net migration- Crude rate of net migration including corrections- Crude rate of increase- Population as a percentage of EU-25 population

glongind: Demographic cohort indicatorsIndicators:- Completed fertility- Mean age of women at childbirth- Mean age of women at birth of first child- Mean age of women at birth of second child- Mean age of women at birth of third child- Mean age of women at birth of parity 4 or over- Proportion of childless women- Proportion of women with one child- Proportion of women with two children- Proportion of women with three children- Proportion of women with four children or over- Proportion of ever married males by generation- Proportion of ever married females by generation- Mean age of first marriage - males- Mean age of first marriage – females- Proportion of marriages dissolved by divorce by cohort- Mean duration of marriage at divorce- Median duration of marriage at divorce

Collection: dpopTables available: Populationppavg: Average population by sex and five-year age groupsIndicator:- Average population by sex and five-year age groups

pjan: Population by sex and age on 1. January of each yearIndicator:- Population by sex and age on 1. January of each year

pjanind: Population structure indicators on 1st JanuaryIndicators: - Proportion of population by age groups- Women per 100 men- Young/old age dependency ratio

pjansin: Unmarried population by sex and age on 1. January of each yearIndicator:- Unmarried population by sex and age on 1. January of each year

Pjanmar: Married population by sex and age on 1. January of each yearIndicator:- Married population by sex and age on 1. January of each year

Pjandiv: Divorced population by sex and age on 1. January of each yearIndicator:- Divorced population by sex and age on 1. January of each year

Pjanwid: Widowed population by sex and age on 1. January of each yearIndicator:- Widowed population by sex and age on 1. January of each year

- Individual Member states of the EU-25: Please note: - FX stands for metropolitan France, excluding the overseas departments (DOM) - FR stands for the whole France, including the overseas departments (DOM)

- The aggregates EU-25, EU-15 and euro area Please note: These aggregates include FX until 1997 and FR from 1998 on. This change is indicated by a flag b (break in series) in the figures for 1998.

- The aggregates EEA-28 and EFTA, and their individual countries Please note: The aggregate EEA-28 includes FX until 1997 and FR from 1998 on. This change is indicated by a flag b (break in series) in the figures for 1998.- Bulgaria, Romania- Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, FYROM, Serbia and Montenegro- Canada, United States, and Japan (Source: US Bureau of the Census - International Data Base)

Data are collected by Eurostat from the National Statistical Offices. National annual estimates of population are based either on the most recent census round, applying the component method, or on the data extracted from a population register.

Eurostat calculates the European aggregates on the basis of the data collected from the National Statistical Offices. In same cases, aggregates are estimated,

Adjustments

Average population is calculated by Eurostat as the arithmetical mean of the population at 1 January of two consecutive years. Eurostat produces the corrected net migration figures by taking the difference between total and natural population increases. This assumes that any movement of population not attributable to natural change (births and deaths) is attributable to migration. Corrections due to population censuses, register counts, etc. which cannot be classified as births, deaths or migrations are also taken into account in the corrected net migration figures.

Two definitions of age may be used for the classification of events occurring in a given year by age of the person concerned:

- the age reached during the calendar year under review, i.e. the year of observation minus the year of birth;- the age in full years at the time of the event, i.e. the age at last birthday (age completed).

Injudicious comparison of rates established using different definitions of age might give a skewed image of international reality. The choice of one or other definition leads to significant differences, particularly in the analysis by age, since the exact age in rates expressed in terms of ‘age at last birthday’ is likely to be around half a year more than that for rates compiled by reference to ‘age reached’. To cope with this problem Eurostat has established SYSCODEM, a permanent conversion method, which for statistics on fertility, divorce, mortality and first marriages, permits comparability of data compiled according to any definition from across the European Union. The conversion procedures are described in the work Methodology for the calculation of Eurostat’s demographic indicators (G. Calot and J.P. Sardon).

Base period

In principle, 1960 is the reference year and therefore considered as the base period.

Recording of transactions

For most tables, 1950 is the base period, with exception of glongind (= 1900) and pjansin, pjanmar, pjandiv, and pjanwid (= 1960).

Absolute figures received from the NSI are validated by Eurostat before being sent to the database.

Eurostat does not collect indicators directly from the countries, just raw numbers. To ensure comparability between EEA countries, Switzerland and the totals of the demographic indicators shown, the series up to 1998 were compiled with the help of a software package known as SYSCODEM, which uses a harmonised method to calculate the most complex indicators. The system has the disadvantage that some indicators calculated by Eurostat might differ from the ones published by the countries themselves. Since SYSCODEM is to be replaced by a new computation system in 2005, however, the European Demographic Observatory (EDO) has from 2000 onwards provided some of the indicators on the years 1999-2003. The methodology used for producing them is similar to the methodology used within SYSCODEM in the past. Furthermore, due also to this replacement, it was not possible to update the longitudinal indicators with information from the recent past. A new detailed and well-documented methodology related to the above-mentioned future system of calculation – Methodology for the calculation of Eurostat’s indicators (G. Calot and J.P. Sardon) – is already available (see link in the present documentation).

The most recent data on total population, live births, deaths and net migration (including administrative corrections) can be found under the DGEN collection in two different tables, depending on the degree of reliability of the data and the period of the year :

- most reliable data (based on national provisional data) are available in table GIND. During the period July-December, these are the most up-to-date population data available.

- during the period January-June, the most recent Eurostat estimates can be found in table GFEST. However, these data are subject to revisions, sometimes significant, from June onwards.

Detailed information on population (by age, sex and marital status) can be found under the DPOP collection. This information is however updated after the total population data found under the DGEN collection

Rapid collection: In April, Eurostat sends a rapid questionnaire to all countries, asking basic data for the year before (population, births, deaths, immigration, emigration, etc.) as provisional figures. Since 1998, this collection has been done jointly with the Council of Europe.

Main collection: The collection is done, for the first time in 2000, jointly with the Council of Europe and the UN Statistical Division (UNSD). In June, Eurostat asks the 37 countries under its responsibility to transmit by the 15th of September the final and more detailed data. Data arrive from July until October. These data are checked, processed and introduced into New Cronos by the end of March. They are also the basis of the publication Population statistics and other Eurostat publications as well as for specific research projects.

Data on population are presented country by country and for groups of countries the European Union (EU-25), the former EU-15, the Economic and Monetary Union (euro area), the European Economic Area and the European Free Trade Association. How complete the tables are depends largely on the availability of data from the relevant national statistical institutes, (as well as on the state of the enlargement).

Data for France are collected for both Metropolitan France (code FX), i.e. excluding the overseas departments (DOM), as well as for the whole of France (code FR), i.e. including the overseas departments. The aggregates EU-25, EU-15, Eurozone and EEA-28 include FX until 1997 and FR from 1998 on. This change is indicated by a flag b (break in series) in the figures for 1998.

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